International
Biden seeks to put abortion battle at center of midterms
AFP | Sebastian Smith
US President Joe Biden vowed Tuesday to make a law enshrining nationwide abortion rights his top priority if Democrats win their uphill battle for Congress in looming midterm elections.
Biden’s speech marked a newly intensified push by the White House to lift the party ahead of November 8, when Democrats hope to defy historical trends by retaining their razor-thin control of Congress.
Midterm votes typically see the party in the White House punished, and this year the Democrats face discontent over inflation, an unpopular president, and fierce cultural wars around schools, gender issues and abortion.
In abortion, however, Biden sees a potential game-changer, with anger seething over the Supreme Court’s shock decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, the ruling from half a century ago that enshrined access to abortions nationwide.
“Women all across the country, starting in my house, lost a fundamental right,” Biden said in a speech in Washington.
Citing the “chaos and the heartache” for women seeking to terminate pregnancies, Biden said that in the wake of the Supreme Court ruling abortion bans had now been put in place by Republicans in 16 states, home to 26.5 million women.
And he cast the election as setting the stage for a momentous fight next year in the new Congress.
If Republicans win, any attempt to pass a national abortion ban will be stopped at his desk, Biden said. “I’ll veto it.”
If Democrats hold on, the priority would be a national abortion rights law, effectively overturning the Supreme Court ruling.
“The first bill I’ll send to Congress will be to codify Roe v. Wade,” Biden said, calling this a “promise.”
“I’ll sign it in January, 50 years after Roe was first decided the law of the land.”
The White House would not say how Biden envisions details of the law and whether he would support any kind of restrictions on abortion.
“It should be something that is decided between a woman and her doctor, her family — not politicians,” Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.
Passion yes, but votes?
There’s no questioning the passion swirling around abortion on the political stage.
Roe v. Wade made the procedure legal everywhere, while the Supreme Court decision handed power fully back to individual state governments, prompting Republican leaderships across the country to swiftly move to impose restrictions or bans, in line with years of “right to life” campaigning.
The issue is potent, but there’s no guarantee it will move the needle in three weeks.
Democratic officials, including Biden, have repeatedly suggested the possibility of an electoral uprising led by women.
“The court and extreme Republicans who have spent decades trying to overturn Roe are about to find out,” Biden said. “They ain’t seen nothing yet.”
He referred to a surprisingly strong rejection by Kansas voters in August of a plan to strip abortion rights from the state’s constitution.
“Come this November we’re going to see what happens all over America,” Biden said.
Polls consistently show that a majority of Americans believe abortion should be allowed. While most also think there should be some restrictions, only 13 percent, according to Gallup, support full bans.
The bad news for Democrats, however, is that polls show abortion is far down the list of concerns motivating most voters in the turmoil of post-pandemic US life.
A New York Times/Siena poll out this week showed that of likely voters, 26 percent named the economy as the top issue and 18 percent listed inflation, which is running at the highest rates in four decades.
Abortion scored a lowly five percent of likely voters.
Worryingly for Democrats, the poll also found a stunning shift from women independent voters.
In September, this group backed Democrats over Republicans by 14 points. The latest poll shows them backing Republicans by 18 points.
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US Education Secretary Miguel Cardona (R) looks on as US President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the student debt relief portal beta test, in the South Court Auditorium of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, next to the White House, in Washington, DC, on October 17, 2022. (Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP)
International
Paraguay summons Brazilian ambassador over Itaipú espionage scandal
Paraguay summoned the Brazilian ambassador in Asunción on Tuesday to demand “explanations” and called its own representative in Brasília for consultations following Brazil’s acknowledgment of an espionage operation. The Brazilian government, led by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, attributed the operation to the previous administration.
The surveillance effort aimed to uncover Paraguay’s position in now-suspended negotiations with Brazil regarding the pricing of electricity from the binational Itaipú hydroelectric plant, according to reports in the Brazilian press.
The Brazilian government “categorically denied any involvement in the intelligence operation,” stating in a Foreign Ministry communiqué on Monday that the espionage was carried out under former President Jair Bolsonaro’s administration (2019-2023).
“The operation was authorized by the previous government in June 2022 and was annulled by the interim director of the (state intelligence agency) ABIN on March 27, 2023, as soon as the current administration became aware of it,” Brazil’s government asserted.
Paraguay’s Foreign Minister Rubén Ramírez announced that Brazilian Ambassador José Antonio Marcondes de Carvalho was summoned “to provide detailed explanations” regarding the operation. Additionally, Paraguay recalled its diplomatic representative in Brasília “to report on aspects related to the intelligence activity conducted by Brazil regarding Paraguay’s government affairs.”
International
Elon Musk to step down as government advisor, per Trump insiders
President Donald Trump has informed his inner circle that Elon Musk will be stepping down from his role as a government advisor, according to a report by Politico today.
Citing three individuals close to Trump, Politico states that the president is pleased with Musk’s leadership at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), where he has implemented significant budget cuts. However, both have agreed that it is time for Musk to return to his businesses and support Trump from a different position outside the government.
A senior administration official told Politico that Musk will likely maintain an informal advisory role and continue to be an occasional visitor to the White House. Another source warned that anyone thinking Musk will completely disappear from Trump’s circle is “deluding themselves.”
According to the sources, this transition is expected to coincide with the end of Musk’s tenure as a “special government employee,” a temporary status that exempts him from certain ethics and conflict-of-interest regulations. This 130-day period is set to expire in late May or early June.
International
Milei vows to make Argentina so strong that Falkland Islanders “choose” to join
Argentine President Javier Milei reaffirmed his country’s claim over the Falkland Islands (known as the Islas Malvinas in Argentina) and praised the role of the nation’s armed forces during a ceremony marking the “Veterans and Fallen Soldiers of the Malvinas War Day,” commemorating 43 years since the 1982 conflict with the United Kingdom.
Argentina continues to assert sovereignty over the islands, arguing that Britain unlawfully seized them in 1833.
“If sovereignty over the Malvinas is the issue, we have always made it clear that the most important vote is the one cast with one’s feet. We hope that one day, the Malvinas residents will choose to vote with their feet and join us,” Milei stated.
“That is why we aim to become a global power—so much so that they would prefer to be Argentine, making deterrence or persuasion unnecessary. This is why we have embarked on a path of liberation, working to make Argentina the freest country in the world and once again the nation with the highest GDP per capita on the planet,” he added.
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